Lipstick blotter



March 11, 1969 v. A. FORTE LIPSTICK BLOTTER Filed Nov. 5, 1966 FIG.

FIG.3

INVENTOR. VIRGINIA A. FORTE BY wwzz ATTORNEY United States Patent3,432,081 LIPSTICK BLOTTER Virginia A. Forte, Mishawaka, Ind., assignorto William Getha, Lakeville, Ind. Filed Nov. 3, 1966, Ser. No. 591,820U.S. Cl. 225-39 Int. Cl. B26f 3/02; B65h 35/10 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THEDISCLOSURE It is common practice for women when using lipstick to applythe lipstick and then blot it by placing a thin absorbent strip of paperor other material between the lips and pressing the lips firmly togetherwith the material therebetween. This practice removes the excesslipstick so that it will not be deposited on drinking glasses and colfeeand tea cups, and also smooths the remaining lipstick to give it a neat,uniform or natural appearance. Various absorbent materials have beenused in the past for blotting the lipstick, including pieces of papernapkins, handkerchiefs and pieces of toilet paper. Each of theseblotting means has definite disadvantages, such as poor absorption,inconvenience in handling, applying and disposing of the used material,or often not being readily available at various places where it may benecessary to apply the make-up. It is, therefore, one of the principalobjects of the present invention to provide a lipstick blotter which ishighly absorbent for eifective removal of the excess lipstick, using theaforementioned practice of blotting the lips and which is convenient touse in various places and under most conditions.

Another object of the invention is to provide a relatively simple andcompact lipstick blotter structure which can be easily carried in thepurse or pocket, and which can be readily and conveniently used bymerely pulling the blotter material from the structure and tearing offthe desired length, leaving the remainder enclosed in a protectedcondition for cleanliness and neatness.

A further object of the invention is to provide a combination of anabsorbent material of relatively long strips or sections which canreadily be severed into desired lengths, and a dispensing device for thematerial which protects the material until it is ready to be used, andwhich retains the material in a sanitary condition.

Still another object is to provide a combination dispenser structure ofthe aforementioned type, which can be either a refillable or throw-awaytype, and which retains the material in the dispenser until it isintentionally removed therefrom, and which is so constructed anddesigned that it assists in severing the desired usable lengths from theend of the strip or section of absorbent material.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will become apparentfrom the following description and accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of a lipstick blotter device showinga portion of the absorbent material projecting therefrom;

FIGURE 2 is a top plan view of the lipstick blotter device shown inFIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the 3,432,081 PatentedMar. 11, 1969 device shown in the preceding figures, the section shownbeing taken on line 3-3 of FIGURE 2; and

FIGURE 4 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of the present device, thesection being taken on line 4-4 of FIGURE 1.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, numeral 10 designatesgenerally the present lipstick blotter device containing a strip ofabsorbent material 12 for blotting the lipstick. The exact size andshape of the present device is not important, and it may be relativelysmall so that it will fit into a purse or pocket or it may be relativelylarge for use on a dresser, vanity or shelf. The shape may be variedsomewhat, depending upon the manner in which it is to be carried.

The device includes a container-dispenser 14 having a lower section 16and an upper section 18 secured to said lower section. The two sectionsmay be secured together by any suitable means, such as screw threads ora snap or snug fit between the two sections. The manner illustrated inthe drawings consists of interlocking screw threads on the upper andlower edges, respectively, of sections 16 and 18. The strip material 12is arranged in a roll or pack seated in lower section 16 and heldtherein by upper section 18 when the upper section has been secured tothe lower section. The material 20 is unrolled from the center portion22 of the roll, which normally has a hollow center, the material beingpulled from the center hole upwardly through a hole 24 in top 26 ofupper section 18. The material should be approximately the widthillustrated in FIGURE 3, i.e., between about onehalf and one inch, forexample, three-quarters of an inch, since this size will effectivelyblot the lips without any undue waste or inconvenience. The container 14may be of any suitable material; however, plastic would normally beused.

The blotting material is preferably made of soft, absorbent paper andmay be scored at various points, such as approximately every two inches,to facilitate tearing. However, the material is preferably of such acharacter that it can be easily torn at any desired point to give thelength of section most effective for the particular use. It is importantfor a small portion of the material 28 to remain projecting from hole 24after a section has been torn therefrom to provide a tail which caneasily be grasped. An annular rib 30 is preferably provided on theexternal surface of top 26 and this rib is provided with one or twosharp corners against which the material can be pressed by the thumb orfinger when a section is being torn from the strip of material. Byhaving rib 30 spaced from hole 24 in the manner illustrated in thedrawings, a projecting portion of the strip will automatically be formedwhen the section is torn from the strip. In the embodiment of thepresent invention illustrated in FIGURE 3 the containerdispenser has acontoured bottom similar to that on the top and a rib 32 is utilized asthe seat for the device.

In the use of the present lipstick blotter device, a roll of materialsuch as tissue is placed in. the container-dispenser 14 and a strip ispulled from center opening 22 of the roll and threaded through hole 24..The two sections 16 and 18 are then secured to one another and thedevice is ready for use. When a section of the material is to beremoved, portion 28 is pulled outwardly to remove a section of thedesired length, and this section is pressed downwardly against rib 30and the extending portion torn therefrom, thus leaving a protrudingportion for the next operation. The absorbent material is then used toblot the lipstick by placing the material between the lips and pressingthe lips together. The material, being of an absorbent nature, removesthe excess lipstick and smoothes the lipstick to a uniform surface. Itis seen that the device forms a small, easily handled and used devicewhich can be carried in the purse or pocket or otherwise put in aconvenient place for continued use, and provides a readily disposablesection of material for blotting the lips.

A compartment is preferably provided in the container dispenser forreceiving and storing the used sections until it is convenient todispose of the sections. The top section 18, being substantially longerthan the width of the roll, provides an effective receptacle for theused material. The material may be inserted into this space through hole36 and stored in the container without intefering with the easy removalof the unused material from the center of the roll and through hole 24.

While only one embodiment of the present invention has been describedherein various changes and modifications may be made without departingfrom the scope of the invention.

I claim:

1. A lipstick blotter device comprising a container-dispenser havingWalls defining an internal space and an opening therein to said space, apack of absorbent and easily torn material in strip form disposed insaid space and having a portion projecting through said opening andextending from said dispenser, the length of said internal space beingsubstantially longer than the width of said roll to provide room forused material in the same space as said pack of material, and meansdefining a second opening in a wall of the dispenser-container forinserting used material.

2. A lipstick blotter device as defined in claim 1 in which said stripof absorbent, easily torn material consists of a strip of tissue paperbetween one half and one inch in width.

3. A lipstick blotter device as defined in claim 1 in which saidcontainer-dispenser is generally cylindrical in shape with disc shapedends, one of said ends having a central hole therein.

4. A lipstick blotter device as defined in claim 3 in which said stripof absorbent and easily torn material consists of tissue paper in a rollwith a hollow center from which the strip of material extends throughthe hole in said one end.

5. A lipstick blotter device as defined in claim 4 in which an annularrib concentric with but spaced from the hole in said one end projectsoutwardly from said one end to provide a means for assisting in tearinga section of said strip from the protruding end thereof.

6. A lipstick blotter device as defined in claim 5 in which thecylindrical side walls are in two sections and means are provided forreleasably retaining said two sections together.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,864,495 12/1958 Ritche 206582,915,218 12/1959 Rosenrnan et al 20657 X 3,095,087 6/1963 Yates 206573,150,808 9/1964 Vensel 225-406 JAMES M. MEISTER, Primary Examiner.

U.S. c1. X.R.

